


Deepsea

by Cinnamuff



Category: Splatoon
Genre: Fan Characters, Inkling Female, Octoling Female, Post-Octo Expansion DLC, Splatoon - Freeform, Splatoon Inkling, splatoon 2 - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-08
Updated: 2020-03-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:20:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23069137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cinnamuff/pseuds/Cinnamuff
Summary: Tallon's an Inkling who's been curious about Deepsea ever since she step foot in Inkopolis Square. One night, she decides to head down to Deepsea, brushing off the rumors her friends told her...
Kudos: 1





	1. Curious

**Author's Note:**

> hOOOOOOOH this story went through like 3-4 other iterations before I was happy with it. I got the idea for this story shortly after Octo Expansion was revealed back in 2018! I write all the time, but I've always been shy about posting stories and self-conscious about what I write. Hopefully posting this here will help me get over that. x,D;
> 
> Tallon's a fan character I've drawn a couple times in the past, usually with her friend Citrine!  
> https://www.deviantart.com/cinna-muff/art/Imagine-Inkopolis-Zine-Shoppin-797638722  
> https://www.deviantart.com/cinna-muff/art/Chillin-808904735
> 
> Anyway here's the first chapter of Deepsea, I hope you'll like it and stick around for the other chapters!

The sun was setting in Inkopolis. Everyone that was in Inkopolis Square were now heading home, as was Tallon, a dark blue haired Inkling. She has dark skin and was wearing the Pilot Goggles, Round Collar Shirt, and Violet Trainers. Tallon and a couple of her friends just exited out of the tower after finishing up some ranked matches. 

“Did you see how they slammed the Rainmaker on the pedestal!?” Tallon asked, turning to her friends. 

“Yeah! Only a few seconds left and they were like ‘VEEMO!’ and BAM!” Ruby added. They were an Octoling with tan skin and red tentacles, wearing the Octoglasses, Annaki Flannel Hoodie, and Suede Nation Lace-Ups. 

“Oh, oh! What about the Carbon Roller? How they were getting all of those kills!?” Citrine added. They were an Inkling with fair skin, yellow tentacles tied into a bun, and they wore the Squid-Stitch Cap, Squidmark Sweat, and Suede Gray Lace-Ups. 

“YEAH!! They were SO cool!!” squealed the Octoling. 

“Oh man, I’m so tired from battling today... “ Tallon sighed. They walked to the middle of the Square and stretched. 

“I am too…” said Citrine. “Well, I’m gonna head on home!” 

“I’m gonna go home too. But do ya guys wanna meet up here at 2 again?” asked Ruby.

“Yeah!” the two Inklings cheered. 

“I’m gonna grab a snack at the cafe for a sec before I go home! I’ll see you tomorrow, kay?” Tallon asked.

“Yeah!” her friends responded.

“Alright, bye!” Tallon said, waving to her two friends who were heading towards the skytrain. She watched them head inside the station before turning back to the cafe. Before she entered the cafe, she stopped and glanced to the right, and saw the stairway that led to a subway. 

The sign next to it read “Deepsea Metro”. She’s gone to the cafe multiple times, and every time, she looks at that stairway. She’s been curious about it for sometime, being a stairway inside an alley in the back of the Square. 

She’s pointed it out before with her friends, but they tell her stuff of ambiguous truth, like it’s “scary” or “dangerous” to venture down there. She only believed part of those claims though. It can’t be as bad as they say, right?

Tallon walked away from the cafe door and approached the stairway. She stared at the abyss, and the abyss stared at her, striking her with a bit of fear. Yet, she wanted to know what was at the bottom of the stairway. 

She stepped down a few steps, getting closer to the shadowy abyss. She was getting second thoughts. Maybe she should turn back… She looked at the entrance, and pulled out her phone. It was just a few minutes after 7. She looked at the abyss again. She made up her mind. One hour. She’ll go and see what’s down there, and come back. Nothing else.

She continued down the stairs.

\--

A few minutes later, and she’s still going. 

“How long is this staircase…?” Tallon said under her breath. As she walked, it was getting darker and darker, almost pitch black. At one point, she had to use her phone as a light, because she couldn’t see the stairs. She was so sure she was deep underground at this point. This staircase was ridiculously long! 

After a few more minutes, she reached the bottom of the stairs. There was a ticket machine, and next to it was a list of places where the train went, and how much it was to travel there. She couldn’t get any further without a ticket, so she bought one. It was a ticket to the last stop, Deepsea City. 

The path to the station was eerily empty. There was no one but her inside the station. Was this place abandoned? Was it recently abandoned? Not to mention, the atmosphere was much darker than the lively Inkopolis. She walked through a tunnel and entered the area where trains came and went. It was massive! There were two tracks, one going and one coming. Tallon waited at the platform that led to Deepsea. 

Suddenly, there was a breeze coming from the tunnel, and the train came and stopped. The doors opened and Tallon walked inside, but was caught by surprise at how different the inhabitants looked! They weren’t like anything she’s seen before! Some of them were larger than a Colossal Inkling, some were smaller than a Pigmy Inkling. Some had multiple heads, some didn’t even have faces! 

Tallon took a seat, away from everyone. Honestly, she was kind of creeped out at the appearance of everyone. They were all so different…

After she took her seat, the train’s doors closed, and it took off. 

Tallon was on her phone, looking up at everyone periodically. They made a few stops, and they arrived at Downtown Deepsea. This was Tallon’s stop. She slid her phone into her front pocket, exited the train into the station. The train’s doors closed and it went off, but backwards this time. 

Tallon exited the eerily empty station, out into Downtown Deepsea. Downtown Deepsea was much more lively than the station, much like Inkopolis, except it was dark. Tallon looked at her phone, and it was only half past 7. She began her walk. All of the species she passed by on the sidewalk were the same ones she encountered on the train. She passed by many buildings; restaurants, businesses, all filled with those odd-looking species. With the massive buildings surrounding her, it didn’t feel much different than Downtown Inkopolis. However, she still felt small and out of place because of how different everyone looked compared to her. There weren’t any Inklings, Octolings, Anemones, Urchins, etc, anywhere..

She was coming up on an alleyway. Habitually, she looked inside as she passed by. Nothing but darkness. She didn’t think anything of it until...

Suddenly, something grabbed the back of Tallon’s shirt, and pulled her into the alley. She dropped the case containing her Inkbrush on the sidewalk. Tallon knew something was wrong, and she could barely see in the alley, so she tried to fight back whatever had grabbed her. Was she being mugged? Assaulted? Her hearts were racing, and the regret of coming to Deepsea were filling her head. She continued to fight back, but whatever grabbed her head had forcefully moved it to the right, away from her left shoulder, and she felt a sharp pain in her neck! Tallon screamed, and whatever was holding her had let her fall to the cold ground. She fell on her side, and her vision was quickly blurring. In front of her, she only saw two shoes before blacking out completely. The last thing she felt was her body being carried.


	2. Regret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The second chapter of Deepsea. Tallon meets a couple new characters and realizes that she _needs_ to get out of Deepsea before it's too late.
> 
> CW: BODY HORROR

Tallon immediately woke up from her short dream. She jumps up in a panic. She’s definitely not in her room, but is she still in Deepsea? She looks at what she’s wearing and she’s only wearing a hospital gown… Is she in a hospital? Was she rescued after the attack in Deepsea? Where exactly is she? 

Tallon curiously looks around the room. It’s gray and blue, and there’s a door to her left. There’s a couple lights above her, but that’s it. Just her, a bed, the door, and the lights. Suddenly, the door opened, and Tallon’s attention switched to the door. 

An Anemone, slightly taller than Tallon, quietly walked in. They had pale blue skin and dark blue hair. Their name is Amara.

“H-hey! Where am I and why am I dressed like this!?” Tallon immediately asked. 

“You’re uh- uhm...” Amara hesitated in responding to Tallon. Instead, they reached into their pocket, and pulled out a wrapped item. “This is for you. It’s food." They handed the wrapped snack to Tallon and Tallon took it. She stared at it disappointingly. 

“Would you follow me, please?” Amara instructed, gesturing towards the door.

“...” Tallon unwrapped the snack. Just a regular granola bar.

“Uh… We should be leaving..” Amara sweated.  
“Fine.” Tallon hopped off the bed and followed Amara out of the room. She took a bite out of the granola bar, and it’s bland. The two exit the room and Tallon is welcomed to a massive main area. It’s dark, it’s gray and blue, where exactly is she? 

“Where… the heck am I…?” Tallon asked Amara, expecting an answer. 

“...” Amara heard Tallon’s question, but didn’t answer. They sighed quietly. This Inkling had no idea what was in store for them...

Tallon finished the granola bar as soon as they entered a different room. It was white and bright, a complete change from the dark and gray atmosphere they were previously in. It was small, and there were multiple tables with science equipment on them. 

“Dr. Yiota, I’ve brought them…” Amara said with a deadpan voice. Across the room, Yiota was typing away at a laptop. As soon as she heard Amara’s voice, she perked up. 

“Oh??” Yiota looked up at the door and saw their assistant, standing with Tallon. She sprung out of her chair and approached the two. 

Yiota reached for Tallon’s hands and shook them vigorously. “Hello!!! It’s good to see you awake!!” Yiota was extremely cheery and loud, and this took Tallon by surprise. Yiota was an Octoling with dark skin and purple tentacles with dark purple tips. She was wearing a pale blue sweater along with black pants, dark gray shoes, and a white lab coat. “My name’s Dr. Yiota, nice to meet you!” 

“Uh… Why am I here? This place doesn’t look like a hospital.” Tallon asked, observing the room. “It’s a l-”

“Oh this isn’t a hospital, Subject D.” Yiota corrected. 

Tallon squinted. “S-Subject D?? What does that m-”

“Sit riiiight there on the counter, Subject D, then we can get started!!!” Yiota gestured to the nearby counter. 

“G-get started for what??” Tallon questioned, horribly confused. 

“Subject D…” Amara whispered. “The counter.” 

“...” Tallon climbed on the counter, silently. All she could think about is what Yiota meant, why she’s in a lab, and what Yiota could be doing…

Yiota returned to Tallon, with one arm behind her back and one arm free. “So, Subject D, you've been wondering why you're here! You're here to answer a simple but complicated question…”

Yiota reveals the syringe hiding behind her back. “What happens to an Inkling when I introduce various types of DNA to it?” 

“I- uh… I didn’t consent to this!” Tallon jumped and reeled back slowly, her eyes focused on the needle. Her hearts began to race.

“I know. Hold still, okay?” Yiota forcefully turned Tallon around to her back and poked her in the neck. Tallon let out a loud yelp followed by a pained grunt. Seconds later, Yiota removes the syringe and slaps a bandage on the area to prevent any bleeding. 

“Ow…” Tallon whispered, rubbing the area where she was poked. “What the heck did you put inside me!?” her head whipped back at Yiota.

Yiota grinned and stepped back. “Anemone DNA. Results should occur in seconds...” 

“Wh… Wha--AAH!!” Immediately, Tallon felt the effects of the DNA. She felt growing pains, one of the worst pains that she’s ever felt. She screamed as anemone tentacles sprouted and grew from the back of her neck. 

Amara became extremely concerned. They looked at Tallon, who was clearly in pain, then looked at Yiota. "Sh-shouldn’t we be doing something!?” 

“No…” Yiota responded. “Let it happen.” 

“But she’s--!” 

“Let it happen.” Yiota warned. 

The tentacles began to halt and stopped growing. Tallon was extremely exhausted and terrified. Why...why did they do this? Both Yiota and Amara studied the change and the tentacles. They were writing stuff down, speaking complete jargon that Tallon didn’t understand a word of. They touched the tentacles constantly, which made Tallon wince every time. 

Hours later.

“I think we’re done for today! Amara, could you escort our subject back to their room?” Yiota asked, flipping through her notes.

“Yes, Dr…” Amara responded. “Subject D?” they gestured to the door. Tallon, as exhausted as she was, nearly fell while dragging herself off of the counter. She followed Amara out of the lab, and back to her gray, tiny, room. Did… this really happen? It didn’t feel real...

They arrived and Amara closed the door after Tallon had entered, locking the Inkling inside. Tallon stood in the middle of the floor for a second, and flopped on the bed. She climbed on the bed and thought about everything up until now. So this is where her curiosity led her. She gets kidnapped, and now she’s being used as a test subject for… whatever this is. 

Tallon adjusted herself so she was laying on her side. She felt all sorts of regret, and thought about her friends and family. Her friends warned her about Deepsea, and how she should never visit it. She should have listened, and now she could potentially die here. She curled up sobbing at the thought. She had no idea what time or day it was up in Inkopolis, and she had no idea how her friends and family would react to her sudden disappearance. She felt horrible. The pain of the tentacles grew.

She had to think of a way to get out of here, and fast.


	3. Where's Tallon???

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Citrine and Ruby realize that Tallon hasn't answered her texts, nor did she return home last night! The two try to find some answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short one this time!

The following day. Citrine and Ruby were out in Inkopolis Square, texting and waiting for Tallon to show up.

"This isn't like her… She usually answers her texts as soon as we send them…" Citrine said. 

“Did you try calling her...?” Ruby asked. 

“No…” Citrine navigated through her contacts and called Tallon, but there wasn’t an answer. She tried calling a few more times, but all she got was a voicemail request. “She’s… not picking up…” Citrine began to get increasingly worried.

The two decided to call Tallon’s parents, and both of them were worried and sad, as Tallon didn’t return home yesterday. Both groups had no idea where Tallon was or where she could be…

Citrine pulled up a picture of Tallon on her phone and both her and Ruby began asking around the Square if they’ve seen Tallon around. They went inside the Galleria, the Shoal, the Lobby, and the Cafe. 

“Hum… I did see someone wander down those stairs outside yesterday…” a Nautilus commented. They were rubbing their chin as they thought about yesterday’s events.

“R-really!? Did they have blue tentacles?” Ruby eagerly asked the Nautilus.

“I’m sorry, I don’t remember…” 

“...Thanks for your help.” Citrine responded. 

“I wish you luck in finding your friend!” 

“Thanks!” both Ruby and Citrine responded. They exited the cafe and were chilling in the alley near the entrance to the metro.

“Tallon’s ALWAYS been curious about Deepsea, but it’s so dangerous down there…” Citrine thought. “It had to be her!” 

“Do you really think so? We warned her…” Ruby asked. 

“I don’t know…” 

“Well… we won’t know until we go there ourselves… We should tell her parents before we go though.” 

So the two contacted Tallon’s parents and told them about Tallon’s possible whereabouts in Deepsea. They went back home and began preparing to head down to Deepsea.


	4. Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CW: Body Horror!!

The next day. Tallon immediately woke up from a long dream. She had this almost real dream where she was being experimented on by an Octoling scientist… Wait.

Tallon lifts her head up from the pillow, and she sighed as she felt a wave of sadness. She’s still in the same room as she was before. That dream was real. She sat up and reached to touch the back of her neck, and surely enough, the anemone tentacles were there…

There was a knock on the door and Tallon jumped. Amara walks in. “Subject D?” they called. “Dr. Yiota would like to see you… Please eat this before you go.” Amara handed the same granola bar to Tallon. Tallon immediately opened and scarfed it down. While she was eating, she couldn’t help but imagine the kinds of things Yiota would do to her today. The thought horrified her.

While the two were heading to the lab, Tallon scanned the area, looking for anything that could look like an escape route. Past her room though, she did catch a glimpse of a door… maybe that could be an exit?

The two entered the lab. 

“Dr.” Amara stated. Yiota was all the way in the back, fiddling with some science equipment. She turned to the doorway. 

“Ah, you’re here!!” Yiota called. She approached the two. “How did you sleep Subject D? I’m almost done preparing the DNA…” 

Tallon stood tight-lipped and averted eye contact. 

“Come follow me, Subject D…” Yiota instructed. She took a few steps forward until she realized Tallon wasn’t following her. Out of fear, Tallon was way too scared to say or do anything. 

Yiota whipped around to look at Tallon. “Silent today, are we?” Amara tried pushing Tallon a little to get her to move, but she didn’t budge. 

“I said, follow me.” Fed up, Yiota stomped over, grabbed Tallon’s arm, and dragged her to the back. Tallon’s anxiety began to spike as Yiota led her to the back. Oh no.

“Alright, sit right there on the counter, then we’ll get started!” Yiota instructed. Tallon slowly climbs on top of the counter, fearful. She couldn’t stop shaking. She could see what Yiota was doing over her shoulder... She saw her filling one syringe with a strange purple fluid, and the sight of it made all of her hearts skip a beat. That fluid… is gonna go inside of her. 

Her anxiety levels rose as she watched Yiota finish filling the syringe. Her head whipped to the side where she could see outside. Somewhere outside… is an exit. Out of this place.

Yiota turned around to Tallon. "Ready Subject D?" She had one large syringe in her hand and the other 5 were placed next to Tallon. 

"Wh-why are there six of them." Tallon questioned when she saw the other five syringes. She backed up on the counter. She was shaking uncontrollably.

"We just want to see what happens… Just relax! You'll be fine." Yiota was removing the cap of one. "Now hold still…" 

"I-I don't- I DON'T TRUST YOU." Tallon slapped the syringe out of Yiota's hands, jumped from the counter, and bolted towards the door. 

"Amara! Get her!!" Yiota shrieked. Tallon was able to get outside of the lab, but Amara caught her before she could get far. Tallon struggled to fight her way out of Amara's grip. A failed attempt at trying to escape… Amara brought Tallon back to Yiota. 

"Sit on the counter please…" Amara whispered to Tallon. Tallon did so. 

Yiota removed the cap of another syringe. "Amara, can you make sure our subject doesn’t escape?”

“Yes, Dr. Yiota..” Amara kept a close watch on Tallon.

“We should also find a better way to keep you restrained… Give me your left arm, please!” Yiota said expectantly. Instead, Tallon hesitated. She didn’t want all of those needles going into her arm… She didn’t want to know what could happen to her arm after all of this.

“Give me your left. Arm. Subject D.” Yiota held out her hand, slightly piqued. Tallon didn’t move, so Yiota yanked her arm close instead. “Amara.”

Amara held Tallon’s left arm, and Yiota poked it twice with two syringes. All Tallon could do was prevent herself from shaking too much and close her eyes. When she felt the pricks, she winced. Then the right arm. 

“Now all we have to do is wait!” Yiota said, as she discarded the five syringes. Tallon opened her eyes and saw Amara putting bandages on the spots where Yiota poked her. She felt horribly uneasy and anxious. She’s not looking forward to this…

As Amara was putting on the last bandage, Tallon felt her left arm tingle. Oh no… She put her right hand on her left arm. Then her right arm started tingling and she felt intense growing pains immediately after. 

Tallon tried to prevent herself from screaming, but she couldn’t help it. She let out a shrill scream as she felt both of her arms stretching and enlarging. Both Yiota and Amara nearly jumped to the ceiling. 

“Quiet, quiet!!” Yiota said, turning around to quiet down Tallon. “Shh!!” As soon as Yiota saw the state of Tallon’s arms, she reached for her notebook and began to jot...whatever down. More science jargon that Tallon didn’t understand. She was more focused on the pain and not what Yiota was doing. 

“It hurts so much!! Make it stop!!” Tallon screamed, with tears streaming down her eyes. Amara was trying to quiet Tallon down, but Yiota was excitedly jotting notes down and inspecting the state of Tallon’s arms. Amara felt immense remorse for Tallon. She didn’t ask to be a part of this, she didn’t consent to this, and yet, here we are. They’re begrudgingly helping Yiota with all of this. Working with Yiota on unethical and illegal projects like this made them feel disgusted with themselves and Yiota… 

Hours later. Tallon’s arms stopped growing, but they were still extremely sore. Tallon looked at the state of her arms and hands and she broke into tears. Her arms had elongated and enlarged 3 times their original size, and… she no longer had 5 fingers. Instead, she only hand 3. Not to mention that her fingers were longer too. When she stood up, her arms reached down past her knees. They were completely different. They weren’t even the same colour as her skin anymore, they were a dark turquoise colour. She didn’t ask for this.

“Alright, I think I’m done with you for now, Subject D.” Yiota said as she was reviewing her notes on the arms. 

Amara was leading Tallon out of the room until Yiota stopped them. “Wait.” she said. “Subject D, can you turn into a squid?”

“Uh…” Tallon thought for a second. She hasn’t been a squid since… the day she was kidnapped. It was during her last ranked battle. She attempted it, but… failed. “I-I can’t…” Tallon said, trying to hold back her tears. All of this DNA… is this gonna prevent her from playing in ranked battles as she did before? Is she going to lose her ability to play? Is she ever going to return to Inkopolis?

“Hum…” Yiota wrote something down in her notes. She put her notebook down on the counter next to her and approached Tallon. “Turn around?” Tallon did so, but slowly. What… is Yiota gonna do now? What does she have to brace herself for this time?

Yiota reached behind the anemone tentacles on Tallon, and pressed a specific spot on her neck. Immediately, Tallon felt herself shrink and fall on the floor. She’s a squid now!

Yiota chuckled. “So you can turn into a squid!” Tallon didn’t want to be here anymore. “Wait, before you go, I want to check you out even further!” Yiota picked up squid Tallon and carried her over to the counter where her notebook was on. Tallon didn't know it, but with all of the foreign DNA inside of her, she hardly resembled a squid anymore. 

\--

As Amara was taking Tallon back to her room, Tallon began to cry, silently. She felt so powerless in this whole situation, and that there was no way out of this hell. They passed the hallway, the hallway Tallon was eyeing earlier. 

Amara dropped Tallon off in her room. 

"A-Amara…?" Tallon asked, not facing them. 

"Y-yes?" 

"What's down the hallway that we always pass by?" 

"That's...um…" Amara looked down, disappointed. "I...can't tell you." 

"Oh." Tallon was upset to hear that, but that made her even more curious about what was down there.

"I have to go now... I'll see you in a few days." Amara was almost out of the room.

"Mm." Tallon responded.


	5. An Attempt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Citrine and Ruby head down to Deepsea to search for Tallon, while Tallon makes an attempt to escape.

Back in Inkopolis Square, Citrine and Ruby found themselves standing in front of the entrance to Deepsea Metro. Both of them were sweating.

"You uh… Ready to do this?" Ruby asked Citrine, eyeing the metro's entrance nervously. Citrine nodded silently, also focused on the entrance.

"Well, let's go…" Ruby took a few steps down the stairs. Citrine followed them.

"I'm so nervous…" Ruby commented.

"I am too.." Citrine added. 

The two cautiously walked down the stairs. Soon, they reached the ticket area. 

"Is this place still in service..?" Citrine asked, observing how dilapidated the station looked. There was graffiti, stickers, trash, scattered all around the station. It was such a striking contrast to Inkopolis's clean train stations.

"I hope so… Let's see if the ticket machine still works. To their surprise, the ticket machine was working. The two of them were able to pay for their tickets. They decided they would head to Deepsea City as their first location, then they would move on to the smaller locations that were on the way. Once they paid, they entered the station, where they waited for the train.

Minutes later, there was a breeze coming from one of the tunnels, and a train came whizzing past the two. The train had all sorts of graffiti on it along with stickers scattered on it, much like the entrance to the station.

The sign on the train read Deepsea City, so the two got on it. The train was relatively empty, save for a few passengers, which were species unlike Citrine and Ruby had seen in their life! 

They took their seats and the train held at the station for a few minutes before finally taking off.

\--

The train arrived in Deepsea City. Citrine and Ruby exited the train and the station was definitely busy. Trains were coming in and out of the station and passengers were coming and going. The two exited the station into Deepsea City.

It was definitely darker than Inkopolis. If you looked up above you could see some light coming through. 

"Alright, where should we start first?" Ruby asked.

"We should start by asking around, hopefully someone's seen her…"

So that's what they did. They started going in stores, asking randos on the sidewalks, if they've seen Tallon or anyone that may have looked like her. Unfortunately, surface species are rarely found in Deepsea, so no one's seen her. 

They spend the rest of the day searching for Tallon, but, no luck. When they decided to head back to Inkopolis, Citrine noticed a black tube on the sidewalk in front of an alleyway. 

"Hey Ruby, look!" Citrine grabbed Ruby's arm and pointed in the direction of the tube.

Ruby squinted. "It's a...tube… what is that??" 

"It..looks like…" Citrine approached the tube and inspected it. Her jaw dropped. "RUBY! THIS IS TALLON'S INKBRUSH CASE!"

"Wh-WHAT!?" Ruby came rushing over.

"It has the keychain, the patches, and everything!" Citrine unzipped the case, and Tallon's inkbrush was inside.

"She's in Deepsea City… SHE'S IN HERE!!" Citrine shouted. 

Ruby pulled out their phone and texted Tallon's parents about her possible whereabouts. They didn't find her, but they're 100% sure she's in Deepsea City.

\--

Tallon woke up once again. Tallon hadn't seen Yiota or Amara in a few days, and she was beginning to wonder if they were still here. Her arms and legs increased in size since she was last seen, and at this point, they were both unrecognizable. When she stood up and walked, she felt a lot heavier and slower than she used to be. Both of them were sore whenever she moved around. 

Minutes later and Amara still hadn't come in. Tallon believed that Yiota and Amara weren't around, so she decided to open the door and look outside. No one. 

Tallon closed the door. 'There's no one outside…' she thought. That only meant that she had a chance to find an escape route and get out of here! 

Tallon opened the door once again and tiptoed out, leaving the door wide open. To her right was a long hallway, and at the end, she could see a sealed door.

Tallon crept down the hall, trying to be as quiet as possible. She reached the door and tried to pull it open, but it was almost locked. She tried pushing it open, and felt something move. 

She stopped for a second to rest, but before she revved herself up again, something grabbed her by the neck pricking her on the side. She felt all of her muscles relax and she fell over. Her vision began to blur and she blacked out.


	6. Disgust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CW: Body Horror!
> 
> Alt Title: Tallon and Amara have had enough of your shit, Yiota

Tallon woke up once again… only this time inside the lab. She scrambled to sit up, wondering where she was. 

“Oh, you’re awake! I just injected Octarian DNA inside your tentacles.” Yiota said, discarding a syringe. “You weren’t waking up, so we carried you here!” 

All of this foreign DNA… made Tallon’s blood boil. She clenched her fists. “I… don’t.. want this…” she mumbled.

“Hm?” 

“I DON’T WANT THIS!” Tallon shouted at Yiota. Her blood was really boiling now. “MY BODY HURTS!!”

Yiota ignored Tallon's complaints. She didn't respond and only grabbed one of Tallon's tentacle arms to inject more Octarian DNA. 

Tallon pulled her arm back. “Let go!!!!” she shouted. Yiota responded by reaching for Tallon’s arm again and held it tightly. She quickly injected the DNA inside Tallon’s arm.

Later on…

Both Amara and Yiota had their backs turned, while waiting for the DNA to react. Tallon was eyeing the escape door this whole time…

'That has to be the way out…' Tallon thought to herself. Yiota and Amara weren’t watching her, so she began quietly climbing off the counter and tiptoeing towards the exit. When she reached the door, she began to feel tingling in her arms.

'Oh cod…' Tallon began to sweat. Yiota turned back to check on Tallon, but soon realized that she was gone! Her head snapped to the doors, where Tallon had just begun sneaking out.

"SUBJECT D!!" Yiota shrieked, startling both Tallon and Amara. She sprung out of her chair and ran to get Tallon.

Tallon began sprinting towards the escape door.

Unfortunately, Yiota caught Tallon by her hair and began dragging her back, but Tallon wasn't going to be taken back into that lab that easily. She began to fight, HARD.

She threw punches, she tried pushing Yiota, anything she could do so Yiota could let her go. 

"If you'd just comply, I wouldn't have to drag you like this!" Yiota said, trying to keep her grip on Tallon.

"I'm not going back in there!!" Tallon replied, still trying to shove Yiota away.

Then the DNA started taking full effect. Tallon was hit with a wave of growing pains, in her arms, her neck, and her head as well. Tallon stopped fighting and she could only focus on the pain, giving Yiota a chance to carry her back to the lab.

The pain, as always, was intense. She could feel something growing in all parts of her body. She wasn't able to move, she couldn't fight back, the pain was too intense. 

Yiota was recording everything that happened, as was Amara. What they saw was that Tallon's hair grew longer and curled at the ends and suckers formed on the outside, smaller tentacles grew on the back of her head, and suckers had grown on her arms, but they didn't develop completely. They were stubs.

Yiota was excitedly explaining to Amara all of the changes and findings, however Amara was clearly disgusted.

While the two were taking samples, Tallon was crying silently. She sniffed and wiped her eyes. "When can I go home…?" she whispered.

Yiota was more focused on the samples, but was quick to respond. "You're not going home!" 

Amara sighed. They could barely work knowing Tallon was in pain. 

Shortly after, Tallon started growing again, but it's way more intense this time. She sobbed, writhing at the pain. Yiota checked on her and didn’t pay any attention to Tallon's pain or sobs. She purely cared for the results.

"Yiota, I really think we should stop." Amara insisted. 

"Ugh, no! We're NOT stopping!" Yiota snapped at Amara.

"But she's clearly in pain!!" Amara shouted back. "She looks like she could pass out at any second!"

"So!? There's still a lot more DNA I need to test on them!"

Tallon tries to listen to their argument. Hopefully, maybe, Amara could convince Yiota to let her go. She couldn’t handle this pain anymore..

…

The pain finally subsided. The suckers on her arms had grown a little taller in size, her arms grew longer as did her hair. She was completely out of breath.

"It...hurts…" Tallon panted. Her body was extremely sore from the growing, and she was low on energy in general. 

Around the end of the night, Yiota forced Tallon into her squid form once again, to study the changes. She definitely didn’t resemble a squid anymore, but Yiota didn't care! She was only interested in the changes that disfigured Tallon's body.

After a couple more hours, Yiota allowed Amara to take Tallon back to her room. When Tallon saw how she looked in her reflection, she broke down. She definitely didn't look like herself anymore, and she didn't feel like herself either. Everything had changed: Her arms and hands, her hair, face, legs… If she were to see her friends and family again, would they recognize her? Would anyone recognize her? Can this be reversed? Will she ever escape?


	7. Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of hope for Tallon!

Days later. Tallon's body is completely unrecognizable with all of the changes. Her hair is longer and curls like Octoling tentacles, she has suckers on the top of her tentacles, she has anemone tentacles on the back of her head, her arms have increased in size and changed colour, her legs have increased in size, and to top it all off, she has spikes on her arms.

When she'd walk to the lab with Amara, she saw how different she looked in the windows… It hurt; physically and mentally. She no longer felt like the confident Inkling she once was. Hell, she barely felt like an Inkling anymore.

Yiota and Amara had been studying the changes as usual. They would touch, analyze, pull, and take samples from the mutated parts. She hated how she was just a guinea pig to them. A tool. No matter how many times she voiced her disdain, it fell on deaf ears. She loathed Yiota, despite how terrified she was of her…

Amara though…Yiota’s assistant. They’ve mostly been keeping quiet and staying in the background, but guessing from their responses to Yiota’s orders, they didn’t seem to agree with everything that had transpired.

Tallon lay awake, anticipating someone coming, but no one came yet.. Tallon considered peeking out and looking around, but last time… well… Yiota caught and sent her back. 

Suddenly, the knob on the door turned slowly, and Amara peeked in. “Subject D…” Tallon’s head perked up, but it quickly sank back into her knees. They walked in and closed the door behind them. “There’s something I need to tell you...” 

"What." Tallon asked with her head buried in her knees, expecting the worst. “More foreign DNA?”

"I wanna tell you how to get out of here." 

Tallon lifted her head. 

“Listen closely, I don’t have a lot of time. Down the hall, there’s a tunnel and some stairs at the end. Go up the stairs and push the door. From there, you’ll be in a storage room. Go to the front of the room, and make your way to the front of the building. That’s the exit. Your clothes and bag are in the storage room across from this one. C’mon now... Yiota wants to see you.”

Tallon stood up silently. “...Why are you telling me this?” 

“I… I don’t like what Yiota is doing. I just want you to be free from all of this. You didn’t deserve it.”

“Then why are you helping her?”

“Ah…” Amara remembered how they got wrapped up in all of this with Yiota. “...it’s a long story.”

“HEY! What’s taking so long you two!” Almost out of thin air, Yiota manifested behind the two. 

“Y-Yiota!!” Amara, jumping, quickly turned around to face Yiota, who was clearly annoyed. Amara had small drops of sweat on their forehead. “W-we were just leaving!” 

Yiota squinted. “Oh, really…”

Amara began sweating more profusely. “Y-yes…” 

“Well, whatever. We don’t have a lot of time today. Come you two.”


	8. Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tallon remembers Amara's words from yesterday and escapes!

Tallon woke up, and immediately rushed out of bed. A day before, Amara told her how to escape and that Yiota wouldn’t be around. So, Tallon was ready to get out. She reached for the doorknob and turned it slowly, then peeked outside. No one was around…

Now, she had to find her clothes. Across the room was a storage room, so she tiptoed across the floor and opened the storage room. She flipped on a light switch and found her clothes in a pile in a corner. Her bag was sitting on top of it. She approached the pile and looked inside her bag, and surprisingly, everything was still in it. Her wallet with what cash she had along with her Battler ID, her (dead) phone, and other miscellaneous items. Her clothes though… She removed the hospital gown and tried fitting her shirt and shoes on, but… her shirt ripped at the sleeves and her feet were too big for her shoes…

Tallon’s heart dropped. The fact that she couldn’t fit into her old clothes reminded her of what she went through… and how much she hated this place and wanted to escape. Despite the tearing, she buttoned up her shirt, put her bag around her shoulder, and left the storage room. 

Next, she rushed across the room to the hallway. The hallway with the sealed door that she always tried to reach, but was promptly caught by either Yiota or Amara. She rushed down the hall to the door. This.. is where Yiota caught her the first time she tried escaping. Cod, she still felt the pain on her neck…

Tallon pushed the door open, and because of her arms, she’s much stronger than she was before. Using all of her strength, she successfully pushed the door open. She stepped out of the small crack and the door closed locking itself. 

Now, she’s welcomed to a long, long hallway. She could only see darkness in the distance. She was out of that horrid place, but now, she had to find a way to get completely out of here. She faced the darkness, and rushed through it.

…

Like Amara said, there were some stairs at the end of the tunnel. At the top of the stairs, there was a door. Tallon walked up the stairs and opened the door. Complete. Darkness.

The stairs completely exhausted Tallon, as did the walk to the stairs. But, she had to keep going. The door shut and she blindly made her away through the room until she felt a door. She opened the door, and… she realized she’s in a lab. She freezes. 

As Tallon tried to find an exit, she heard… someone nearby. On instinct, she transformed into a squid, and hid under a table. As a squid, she looked up to see who was nearby, and Yiota passed by. Tallon jumps and shakes. When she hears the sound of the storage room door opening and closing, Tallon crawled from under the table, transformed back into a kid, and frantically made her way out of the facility. 

She saw the doors to the entrance, and pushed them open as she ran through. She stopped as she tried to catch her breath… She looked up, and saw Deepsea City in the distance. She was out of the facility, but she wanted to be out of Deepsea completely. She began running to the city.

On Yiota’s side, she checked Tallon’s room, to check on her to see if she was still asleep, but only stood in the doorway in shock when she saw that THE ROOM WAS EMPTY! 

“Sh-she couldn’t have…?” Yiota whispered.

Yiota began frantically searching through all of the rooms: the extra storage rooms and the lab, and even up above where she worked during the day. 

When she realized that Tallon had really escaped, she stood in disbelief… how could she have escaped, even with all of the added security…? 

Then, Amara came to mind.


End file.
